The Religious Education Council's (REC) 2013 "Review of Religious Education in England" consists of a National Curriculum Framework for RE (NCFRE) designed to unite the RE community around a shared programme of study for pupils aged 4-14, and a set of six policy recommendations for the consideration of the RE community and…

This paper presents data gathered in interviews with 29 informants in Xishuangbanna Dai Autonomous Prefecture of Yunnan, China--an administrative region with Theravada Buddhist religious identity. The data highlight tensions between the traditional faith-based education provided by Theravada Buddhist temple schools and secular state education. The…

There have been persistent allegations that the South African political authorities misused religious education (RE) during the years that Christian National Education (CNE) philosophy held sway, in order to achieve political ends. In this article, an attempt is made to locate and evaluate evidence that will demonstrate whether or not the…

The "Does Religious Education work?" project is part of the Religion and Society programme funded by two major research councils in the UK. It sets out to track the trajectory of Religious Education (RE) in secondary schools in the UK from the aims and intentions represented in policy through its enactment in classroom practice to the estimations…

Focusing on the results of the REDCo (Religion in Education: a Contribution to Dialogue or a Factor of Conflict in Transforming Societies of European Countries) research, this publication sets out how French pupils conceive of "laicite", both generally and in school. It also explores pupils' perceptions of the 2004 law banning the wearing of…

Possibly the largest qualitative study in RE policy and practice in many years, the AHRC/ESRC Religion and Society project "Does RE work? An analysis of the aims, practices and models of effectiveness in religious education in the UK", headed by the University of Glasgow, seeks to map the complex processes of curriculum formation as experienced in…

The argument in this paper is that in spite of the acknowledgement of plurality, many countries in sub-Saharan Africa seem reluctant to introduce multi-faith approaches preferring to maintain Christian confessionalism in religious education. Even in those countries where new approaches are being tried, there is some unwillingness to make wholesale…

The paper addresses the relationship between the twin tasks of enabling pupils both to learn about and learn from religion in the state education systems of Finland and the UK. Recognising that the relationship between these two tasks is the subject of considerable confusion, it is argued that the most appropriate way to view the connection is…

A new study in Melbourne, Australia, has investigated curriculum change in religious education against the background of literature on curriculum change in education in general. Amongst its several findings, it was ascertained that clear information and theoretical understanding about a curriculum change in religious education is just as important…

Questions about the relationship between religion and politics are discussed with particular focus on the consequences for religious education. Norway is taken as an example of a country where increasing cultural diversity challenges traditional politics of religion. In the present climate of conflicting views on the role of religion in politics,…

This article is based upon data deriving from a questionnaire circulated to all local education authorities in England in Spring 2003. The questionnaire was sent to the chairperson of every Standing Advisory Committee for Religious Education, the statutory body responsible for religious education at a local level. During the past decade there has…

This paper is written from the perspective of an Anglican head teacher in the context of UK public educational policy in which managerialism is construed as the prevalent orthodoxy of reform. It seeks to bring the discipline of theology and the field of school leadership studies into closer dialogue around the theme of managerialism in a way that…

This paper considers issues in religious education that ought to be addressed by the recent non-statutory framework for England. It outlines problematic features of the current situation and paints a generally welcoming picture of the educational opportunities afforded by this new initiative. (Contains 4 notes.)

The following contribution deals with the conception of Jewish schools in Germany. With regard to the British debate about state funding for religious schools, current developments in the Jewish educational system in Germany will be presented. After this, the constitutional framework for the establishment of denominational schools in Germany will…

The introduction of citizenship education to schools in England (and Wales) in 2002 has generated interest and concern among religious educationalists, some of whom welcome the opportunities this new educational territory opens up for religious education and some of whom suspect it augurs religious education's demise. This article reports findings…